Front loading washing machines are common in Europe and are becoming popular in the United States. With large loads in a front loading machines, a problem exists in that the clothes take a significant amount of time to become saturated with wash water. As the water fills the bottom of the tub and into the spinner, the clothes are moved through the water. However, especially with larger loads, some of the clothes remain dry for an undesirably long period of time. This detracts from the cleaning efficacy for those non-saturated clothes.
Prior art front loading machines have tried to alleviate this problem by injecting water through the baffles in the spinner. Since the spinner rotates, supplying water through the baffles requires complex, and thus costly construction of the baffle design. As an alternate, water has been injected through a hole in the door boot. A hole in the door boot is subject to leakage. Also, if the injector or spray nozzle extends into the spinner chamber, clothes in the spinner are subjected to excessive wear by contact with the injector or nozzle. The prior art has not provided a satisfactory solution to the clothes wetting problem.
Accordingly, a primary objective of the present invention is the provision of an improved front loading washing machine having front injection of water.
Another objective of the present invention is the provision of an improved method of wetting clothes in a front loading washing machine.
Still another objective of the present invention is the provision of a front loading washing machine wherein a portion of the wash water is supplied to the spinner through holes in the balance ring through which the water drains for wetting clothes in the spinner.
A further objective of the present invention is the provision of a front loading washing machine which reduces the amount of time required to saturate the clothes in the spinner with wash water.
Another objective of the present invention is a method of wetting clothes in a front loading washing machine in a minimal amount of time.
These and other objectives will become apparent from the following description of the invention.